The National Health Fund says that in Poland in 2018-2019, approximately 36 000 people (1% of which were men) were diagnosed with breast cancer. Oncology in Poland and the spectrum covering breast cancer is developing, but not evenly: surgery is almost at a European level, but physiotherapy is behind in development. For people undergoing and who have completed treatment for breast cancer (yearly increase in Poland of 1900), rehabilitation is vital to function in professional, community, and family life, and significantly reduces the risk of vulnerability. Unfortunately, access is limited. In addition, everyone requires their own individual course of rehabilitation according to the oncoplastic method employed and other factors. This area of science has not been reviewed in Poland for more than twenty years, and physiotherapists have negligible knowledge of this subject.
This project addresses the unavailability of modern, personalized rehabilitation for breast cancer patients during and upon completion of treatment.
In collaboration between oncoplastic surgeons and physiotherapists, a wortal will be created with forty films, exercises developed in a new approach to breast surgery rehabilitation, and an algorithm that produces a highly personalized guide at each convalescence stage based on data inserted by the user. The wortal will serve a research, educational, and consulting purpose. We will enable sharing of know-how and posing of questions to experts on the wortal, as well as face-to-face consultations in four cities.
The project will benefit persons who have had surgery: 3000 people will have improved physical fitness and mental health following surgery and radiotherapy, 2000 of whom will reach a level at which they can resume their pre-diagnosis community, professional, and family roles.